Pioneer 0

Pioneer 0, also known as Able, was a spacecraft designed and built by Space Technology Laboratories (STL) under the direction of the United States Air Force as part of the early Pioneer program. Its mission was to be the first U.S. spacecraft to orbit the Moon.

Pioneer 0 was an attempted lunar orbiter. It was designed to test capabilities for future lunar and interplanetary missions, including tracking and communication, radiation detection, and micrometeorite detection. The spacecraft carried a television camera, a magnetometer, ionization chamber, and micrometeorite detectors.

The mission failed shortly after launch on August 17, 1958, from Cape Canaveral. A turbopump failure on the first stage of the Thor-Able rocket caused the vehicle to explode 77 seconds after liftoff at an altitude of approximately 16 kilometers (10 miles). As a result, Pioneer 0 did not reach orbit.